


Two Toned Echoes

by ChronoXtreme



Category: Final Fantasy XIV
Genre: Au Ra Xaela Warrior of Light (Final Fantasy XIV), Content warnings in each chapter, Dark Knight Warrior of Light (Final Fantasy XIV), Discussions of sex, Dragoon Warrior of Light (Final Fantasy XIV), F/F, F/M, First Meetings, Hijinks & Shenanigans, Miqo'te Warrior of Light (Final Fantasy XIV), Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder - PTSD, Some ship content, Spoilers marked in each chapter, Two WoLs become best friends, that's it that's the fic
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-02-12
Updated: 2021-02-12
Packaged: 2021-03-12 12:02:04
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,739
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29384565
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ChronoXtreme/pseuds/ChronoXtreme
Summary: "One brings Shadow, one brings LightTo this riddle, all souls are tiedBrief our moments, brazen and bright"They went by many titles. The Warriors of Light. The Shield and Spear of Eorzea. The Azure Dragoon and the Dark Knight. Dearest and Beloved.But beneath them all, they were just Oda and Shai, two tired women trying to make their way through this cold, unforgiving, wonderful world.
Relationships: (Past) Haurchefant Greystone/Warrior of Light, Aymeric de Borel/Warrior of Light, Y'shtola Rhul/Warrior of Light (Final Fantasy XIV)
Kudos: 8





	Two Toned Echoes

**Author's Note:**

> Many thanks to Gandr for allowing me to use their lovely Warrior of Light Oda for some fun and angsty shenanigans! You can go look at their stuff [here!](https://archiveofourown.org/series/2144826)
> 
> Mainly a look at how FFXIV's plot would go if there were two WoLs, as well as how much two tired ladies just need a long vacation with their loves. A healthy (or not) balance of comedy, fluff, angst, and character introspection/study. There will be some ship content (Y'shtola/Oda, past Haurchefant/Oda, Aymeric/Shai), but the main focus will be on the friendship between the two WoLs.
> 
> Begins after the end of Heavensward and will continue through to current content. Beware of spoilers!

To say that this hunt was going to shite for Oda was one hell of an understatement.

The Clan had just told her that it was a level S mark in the Coerthas Central Highlands, which usually meant trouble — and she should have known it meant more trouble than usual when Eustacia had told her no one else had signed up to take it. 

Trouble, in this case, meant jumping for her life while a beast the size of a small dragon tried its damndest to eviscerate her. 

Snow flew around her as she leapt to the side, barely rolling out of the way of those snapping jaws; she’d already gotten scratched by one of its teeth, and while the bleeding wasn’t bad, she was running out of time and energy fast. 

That was before it had whirled around and smashed her right in the chest with its tail. 

She screamed as she soared across the snowy plain, tumbling across the ground as she tried to scramble to her feet. Yet the beast was right on her tail, claws out and ready to gut her — with no time to dodge. She grimaced, bracing her lance in front of her as her boots sunk into the snow.  _ Fuck, fuck, fuck— _

_ “Hey, over here you sack of shite!” _

She had no time to process before the air darkened, a bolt of dark levin striking the creature.

_ What the fuck? _

The beast roared in frustration — yet it turned around, clearly distracted by whoever had slung that bolt of energy. Heart pounding, she gritted her teeth as she thrusted forward with her lance. The diversion wasn’t going to last forever; if she was going to make it out of this alive, she was going to have to end this quickly.

Flames wrapping around her lance, the heat searing her cheeks, she roared, watching as its claws extended, ready to shred—

A blast of shadowy fire knocked into the beast, and it howled as it staggered to the side, knocked off balance by the attack. Oda’s lance sank into snow, and she snarled.  _ What the— _

“Move to the rear, I’ve got its attention!”

She hissed a few curses under her breath. But she did as told, letting her apparent rescuer take the front as she moved to the back.  _ Damn waste of a dragonfire dive. _ But she was still alive, and she had aether to spare. 

Without the beast trying its damndest to flay her alive, the fight was shockingly short. Every now and then she caught sight of more dark flames licking at the beast’s fur, the sounds of something crushing bones, but she focused solely on her strikes, weaving her spear around her as she fell into the familiar rhythm Alberic had taught her. Thrust, spin, sidestep, thrust — a dance that she’d mastered through moons and moons of practice.

After a final gurgling whimper, the beast fell, snow flying at the impact. Swallowing hard, Oda took a moment to catch her breath, hands on her knees as she watched the blood soak the snow. Okay, maybe she’d taken on a bit more than she could chew. But at least it was dead now. The cash and the seals she’d get as a reward would go a long way. Cutting off a snippet of its tail as proof of the kill, she tucked it into her pouch.

Then, she remembered. Her rescuer. 

Hand still on her lance, she warily circled the beast’s corpse, boots sloshing through the wet snow. At the head of the beast stood a lone figure, dressed entirely in black. Her eyes widened, ears straight up as she drew closer.

Around the figure loomed a red haze — at first she’d thought it merely blood misting in the air, but it persisted even after the beast breathed its last. In their hands was a sword. Wait. No, it couldn’t be a sword because that thing was  _ enormous _ — easily longer than the person themselves. How in the seven hells could a person wield that?

“You’re all right?”

She blinked, realizing that the person was talking to her. “Yeah,” she said softly. “Thanks.”

“Don’t mention it. A knight lives to serve.” 

Oda froze. Those words… How did they…?

With a soft sigh, the red mist faded, the unnatural glow gone — and Oda cocked her head as the figure removed their helmet. White hair, short and ragged, tumbled out of the dark helmet, hanging in red ringed eyes. An Au Ra girl — Xaela, by the black scales. Yet that wasn’t the only black thing on her face: a cross, paint streaking across both her cheeks, stood out against tan skin. 

“You want to tell me what you were doing going up against a Behemoth all by yourself?” she asked.

Oda’s eyes narrowed, slipping her lance on her back; she could pull it out again if things somehow took a turn for the worse again. “Hunt mark. You tracking it too?”

The Xaela snorted. “No. To kill one of these, you’d need a whole party. I was just passing by.”

Oda smirked. “A whole party, huh? I think we did pretty well, just the two of us.”

The Xaela shrugged, placing her sword on her back — Oda blinked as she saw the blood dripping to the snow. Did this girl not clean her weapons? “At least you’re all right. I was worried by the time I got here that I’d find you ripped in two.”

Her eyebrows quirked up. “So you were just… in the area. And came to rescue me.”

“Yes.” 

She didn’t know whether to believe her or not. It felt like something out of a fairy tale, a dashing knight swooping in to save the princess — then again, she wasn’t a princess, and her knight was a little on the short side to be dashing. “Listen,” she said, turning around. “I appreciate the rescue, but I’m gonna leave now.”

“Are you sure you’re all right?”

Oda paused, her ears drooping. The Xaela, she spoke softly. Not condescendingly, not flippantly. She spoke like… Like she knew—

No. That was bullshite. No one knew. No one except the Scions cared. This girl was just nosy, nothing more. One of those white knight types, despite the black armor. Someone who fancied themselves a savior, a guardian to watch over the frail, helpless adventurers who tripped and fell into gobbues or got sprayed by morbols.

Well, that wasn’t her.

“That was a damn close call back there,” the girl continued. “You would have died.”

All right. Oda did not like her tone. “Yeah? And what of it?” she snapped.

The Xaela paused, her gaze pensive. Then: “Just wondering if that’s normal for you.”

Normal?

“And if it is?” she asked, teeth bared as she whirled around. “You’ve got a lot of nerve talking to me like this.”

“Only because I’ve been there before.”

Oda paused.  _ What in the seven hells does that mean? _

Apparently either the Xaela could read thoughts or she was just a good guesser, because she answered, “The loss. The loneliness. The anger. When everything you care about slips through your fingers, you stop caring about risks. About your life. It loses meaning.”

A chill ran down her spine. 

“I don’t know what you’ve been through. Not my place to know anyway. But those feelings can eat you up until you’re as good as dead…” Her hand fell to the hilt of that monstrous sword. “Or you can use them.”

Oda’s eyes narrowed. “Use them how?”

The Xaela reached beneath her breastplate — Oda rose an eyebrow, watching as she pulled something out. A necklace? A silver chain glinted as the woman pulled it off her neck, two objects dangling off it: a ring and a… rock?

No. A crystal. Black, etched with red, oddly enough in the shape of a heart. 

The Xaela undid the chain, slipping the rock off. Then, for some reason, she wrapped it up in a bit of cloth. “There are ways to harness power, true strength, from what you’ve suffered. Through mastering it, I didn’t just become stronger — I found myself, in a way. If you’re willing to pay the price, you could find closure, for yourself and for what you’ve lost.”

Closure. Oda wanted to laugh. There was no such thing, not in this world. The best you could do was try and avoid the pain, if only for a little while. Become numb. That was easy enough, with time. 

And yet. 

The Xaela’s eyes were knowing, her words cutting too close to the quick. As Oda looked at her, she could see… not pain. But weariness. A scar on her neck. The circles under her eyes. The black paint was a more obvious sign, but they all painted the same picture. 

This girl wasn’t talking out of her arse. She’d known pain. Deep pain, the kind that never left. 

“All right,” Oda said, folding her arms. “Say you’re not lying to me and trying to spring me into a trap. How do I gain this power?”

“Take this soul crystal and go to the Holy See of Ishgard. You’ve been there?”

Oda snorted; if only she knew. “I’m not some frightened kitten far from home. I’ve been most everywhere.”

The Xaela’s eyebrow quirked up. “Just checking. Go to the Brume, on the upper landing. You will find someone there. Then, and only then, do you touch the soul crystal. Got it?”

It seemed a bit overly complex. Not to mention vague as all hells. “I’ve handled soul crystals before,” she said, folding her arms.

“Not this one.” 

She wanted to laugh, but the girl’s look on her face was deadly serious. As Oda looked at the bundle, she realized something. “This is yours.”

The Xaela nodded. 

“Then why give it to me? You need it.” No one gave out things, much less soul crystals, for free. That wasn’t how this world worked. Alberic had given her his, but that was because he couldn’t be the Azure Dragoon anymore. This woman was still clearly active in her duty, whatever she was.

It all screamed “trap.” But if it was, this lady was doing a horrible job setting it up. She should be trying to reassure her, telling her it wasn’t too bad. Not warn her and say ominous things.

“I’ll make my own. Not too difficult, all things considered. But you’ll need this one to begin.” Her eyes narrowed, regarding her warily. “I will warn you: to walk this path is to suffer. To sacrifice. Justice demands no less. It will hurt, but you will find a wellspring of strength from it — and you will know the deepest parts of your soul. It hurts, but it heals in greater measure.” Her eyes softened. “Knowing that, do you still wish to take it?”

Seven hells, she’d never said she’d take it in the first place! Yet, as she looked at the Xaela, she paused.

_ You will know the deepest parts of your soul.  _

Fuck, the irony of that — she didn’t even know who she was in the first place anymore. Not after losing her parents. Not after killing so many primals they all started to mix together. Not after Ul’dah and the running and the fear. Not after slaying Thordan and his Knights Twelve, except where was the joy of victory when the price they paid for it was so damn steep?

Not after losing him. 

She’d ran from it all for so long. Running was easy. Familiar. Don’t ask too many questions. Don’t poke too deep. It was like picking at a scab — better to just leave it alone, because time healed all wounds, didn’t it?

Except she hadn’t healed. It still ached, just as fresh as when she’d seen that spear of levin fall from the heavens. When she’d plastered a smile on her lips and watched as everything good in her life slipped through her fingers, like it always would. Sure the pain had dulled, and some moments she could forget. But never for too long. Never long enough. 

Did she even want to? 

_ If you’re willing to pay the price, you could find closure. _

It sounded too good to be true. 

_ For yourself and for what you’ve lost. _

Except the Xaela  _ had _ said that to walk this path would be suffering. She could handle suffering. Maybe not  _ well,  _ according to other people, but she could definitely handle it. 

And, well…  _ he _ would want her to find closure, wouldn’t he?

So, taking a deep breath, she held out her hand. “The Brume, upper level?”

The Xaela smiled, placing the soul crystal in her palm. “Mm.”

“What do I look for?”

“Trust me, you’ll know it when you see it. Just remember — don’t touch the crystal until you get there.”

Oda frowned. “You’re not exactly filling me with confidence here.”

The Xaela chuckled. “Guess not. But it’s worth it. I promise you that.” Pulling the necklace back on and slipping the ring beneath her breastplate — Oda caught a flash of blue on the silver — she turned. “Good luck.”

“Hey, wait a second!” she shouted. “Who are you?”

The Xaela paused. “Why are you asking?”

“So I know whose arse to kick in case this all goes to shite!”

Laughter echoed in the clearing, the Xaela turning back around. “Shai’yra Tarkir,” she said, smiling at her. “Dark knight. If you want to kick my arse, I’m usually in Ishgard between missions.”

“What, you live there?” Oda asked. When Shai’yra nodded, she blinked. “There’s adventurer housing in Ishgard?” Not that it mattered for her, considering Count Edmont’s offer, but Ishgard had only recently stopped being isolationist — and she was a Xaela. Either she’d bribed her way into getting a place or someone  _ really  _ liked her. 

“Well, it’s, uh… not exactly my house. But yes, I live in Ishgard.” Oda smirked as the Xaela rubbed at her neck, pink dusting her cheeks. Someone really liked her, then. “So now you know where to go to kick my arse.”

“Fair enough.” She hesitated, then extended her hand. “Oda. Dragoon.”

Shai’yra’s gauntlet was cold against her palm as she shook it. “Good luck, Oda. The Abyss is a harsh teacher, but it will serve you well.” Before Oda could ask about what that meant, she had turned around and walked away, too-large sword glinting in the sunlight.

The Abyss. Well if  _ that _ didn’t sound fucking ominous.

Yet as she held the soul crystal in her hand, even through the cloth, she felt… warmth. Not residual body heat, but something else. Something, dare she say it, familiar. 

_ Closure. For yourself and for what you’ve lost. _

If only this Shai’yra knew just how long that list was. 

But if it could give her power, make her stronger… then she needed to take it. For those she had lost. For those she could yet save.

Attuning to the aetheryte in Ishgard, she held the soul crystal to her chest as the world around her vanished.

* * *

It felt strange, wearing all the armor and carrying the sword without the soul crystal.

Before, when she’d walked the paladin’s path, it hadn’t been too much of a change to get her soul crystal. Sure, the spirits of paladins past had been there, but it had been nothing like when she’d picked up the dark crystal that night in the Brume. Everything had changed in that moment — and then Fray had come to her.

She could make another soul crystal. It would take blood and suffering, the standard prices. But Fray had taught her how before she’d given her crystal to the Miqo’te dragoon. It would serve her better. 

Even though her mind wasn’t as sharp as Alphinaud’s, her understanding of others limited, she had seen herself in Oda. Fighting without a care in the world, because to care meant pain. Anger in her strikes, born of guilt. Seeking for redemption, though she didn’t know it.

Fray would not give her redemption. Fray would give her something far better. Fray would guide her, lead her through the cold and the snow, through the dark. And then she would have to perform her part. To cloak herself in the fiction. To breathe life into the dead. To give a voice to the voiceless.

_ Take care of her, Fray, _ she thought as she walked through the snow, cold without the soul crystal’s warmth.  _ Like how you took care of me. _

**Author's Note:**

> Hope you enjoyed the writing! If it pleases you, leave a kudos and a comment down below - it's better than getting commends as a DPS!


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